NONsence-PLANing? (Non-Plan Cedric Price)

Is this freedom, too much freedom?

The idea of non-plan was provocative, as it was radical, can't be controlled and no order to some who disagreed with it. But this allows the users who are experiencing it to be  the one creating it's own functional space, the freedom to control it's own indoor weather or usefulness. The size and function can be tweaked by customizing, and it's achievable through an empty canvas, an empty plan.

But can an imagination run that wild? Or can we as planners of space let a random and extreme idea flow with on boundaries?

Balance can help tip the balance back in place. We have to find the right amount of each element to be played on the plate. There's no correct number to be achieve but to be solved with moral and compromise, tolerance and support from each other to be a workable architecture movement.

TO BE REBORN, THE DEATH AND LIFE OF GREAT AMERICAN CITIES?

City planning or the American way of it was thought to be an attack on the current city planning by Jane Jacobs. It is believe to be inadequate to be a safe or beneficial for city to improve or move forward. To be spending a fortune and to not reap anything from it seemed harmful. It is a test lab full of trial and error, to many roles and personnel need to be taken into account to create and be considered.

City planning is important and vital to keep a nation, a society together. Many have conceptual idealism of plans that tweaks and plays with the formation of city planning. Centralized system is usually commonly agreed by logic. I believe strongly in community communication and equal grounds of ideas. Therefore a centralized space can be a great way to ensure a thoroughly connected village. It would be the most fair and equal distant for the majority to be gathered or commuted into the same circle of area.

America, the land of Freedom, a playful ground for dreams to be build and explore into reality. No way of city planning can be perfect for all, but it all can be perfect individually with the right context. At least close to a temporary perfect.

I believe through many trials and attempts things would get better with actions taken:

“In order to rise
From its own ashes
A phoenix First Must Burn.” 
— Octavia E. Butler, Parable of the Talents

Ornament and Crime: The Decisive Contribution of Adolf Loos "Reyner Banham" REALLY?

In a programmed and somewhat insane world, many of us find a way to be more grounded and try to make sense of the world around us. Humans are like packed animal we want to find our own people, those to share or approximate similar taste or ideology to give us a tiny sense of existence. Ornamentation is a decorative non structural elements, that sometimes brings out the personality of a building.

As artists and designers, we would love to communicate or express ourselves through something that makes sense to you, to test bad found out if others speaks to you in the same languages. One day to leave our mark, our footprint for others to discover or for others to be in awe with. As we know, Mimetic Ornaments have meaning, has a story to tell through nature's values. But to a certain point we have to know does the ornament justify itself as appropriate, from it’s style and cultural or development reference. If considered too much for it’s time can people still accept it? Such subjectivity can be overpowering thus limiting an expression from a person.

But as Banham stated, Loos view on ornamentation is not unpopular, as he 'single handedly ' beaten it, but wasn't praise or thanked by many. Has make ornamentation a victim make it's place in society stronger? Even his own works has elements and style of Ornamentation, which contradicts he's point of view of the poor.

Diagram 1: On left, Masonry facade of the historical Sultan Abdul Samad BuildingOn Right, Sino-Portuguese Shop Houses

To place ornaments similar to tattoos is such a fascination to me, as i never thought of it as a crime or taboo to others. It has always caught my eye when I see local ornamentation on buildings, as it give a personality of the times the building lived through, and it is a very permanent art to be proud of as a Malaysian how detailed buildings can be. I do hope to one day find and show my side of how ornamentation should be or can be. 

To conclude my thoughts, expression is an expression, it is not to be held back by economic or financial factors, but the limitations of freedom! Gwendolyn Chan Mei Yee 1001749034

Le Corbusier : Plan of A Modern House

We seek for perfection, for an ideal but as we get to a simpler and simpler structure are we losing ourselves and growing without progress?

How is the masonry house plan a handicap? Paralyzed in what sense, maybe it’s because it was too much of an empty body, a hollow soul. But through that emptiness we have the option and the freedom of a more considerate design for dwellings.

The “modern plan” is utilizing our current technology to its fullest but have free and wide spaces, with more and more openings, to give indoor spaces more life, a connection to the outside world. We are tools as we are the current and future users of the plan, the role we play to be present in the space and know how the architecture is effecting us physically and emotionally. Keep questioning. Why? What? How?

But as tools creating more tools (invention) it could be for lazy convenience we mass produced waste, from resources to spaces.  Space need to be able to accommodate those massive screens that capture moving images and a hot machine that creates ice.

Modern life has many factors to consider, is it necessary? Are we too scared of not being prepared or are we just too good at being human?

Proportion and organization is vital and massively plays big role in our planning for comfort. It gives a sense of sensibility towards the users and designers. The world of balance and proportion is so wide and diverse that there's many more to learn. 

(as you can see I'm playing with odd propotions XD)
Gwendolyn Chan Mei Yee 1001749034

Le Modular: The handsome man's Scale

The modular is a system which is devised for endless possibilities of combinations with just simple and connectable forms. The world is divided into imperial and metric calculation system, the modular claims to be the saving grace of the division between the 2 systems. It only uses a single unit, double unit, and the golden section. The scale was represented with a 6-foot tall “handsome man” with a raised arm.




Personally, as a fan of the metric system, I disagree and felt slightly offended as to why is the logical system is being diminished to just a length. I believe it achieves its communication with all sides of building construction from engineers to contractors. In real life works, things won't be as perfect as a single or double unit. Inflections in the workmanship would adjust the data. To consider the small minor details are necessary.




But, as my interest in prefabrication grows, it is a great thinking and design process of having puzzle-like components to create structural pictures. What kind of designs should a universal modular be? Is it even achievable to have a universal all-in-one modular? If it’s just simple geometry, then isn't a brick considered the most basic modular, even the earliest maybe? If prefab is the future for buildings is The Modular too advance for us the current generation that is can only be understood and used in a future lifetime?



Gwendolyn Chan Mei Yee 1001749034

Delirious New York: Harsh Ecstasy

New York as we know it is a grid city with logical planning of avenues and street, a modern depiction of a cityscape. It optimizes tiny Manhatten maximum spaces with many modern designs and fast-paced movement happening. But in the end, nothing’s perfect and especially for Rem Koolhas who wrote “Delirious New York”. His writing on New York is harsh, it’s a very impactful piece to provoke thinking. To start, he stated New York as unrealized failures, with an expression full of ecstasy. An overwhelming pack of man’s wants and need is the embodiment of what New York is, pushing itself to a point of disconnect with reality.

Coney Island: the experimentation of our wildest dreams. It is such awe, as a physical representation of man's wildest dreams. To our generation, Coney island seems like a dated park, compared to many more popular theme parks with the latest design such as Universal Studio at Singapore or Tokyo Disneyland. With our childhood movies and favorite characters brought to life, it’s more known and attractive. But after knowing a bit of Coney’s history and with the input on Delirious New York, the pure desire of men to reach our fantasy has never shone brighter in history with such an achievement for that time.

Skyscrapers are evidence of elevated desires, elevated lives. Life was becoming more enriched in this Fantasy Pragnitism. Each skyscraper a city within a city with no concern of the nearing buildings. It reflects our modern society, where people can be self-centered and be fully submerged in their own bubble. But at the same time, all these all lead to a bombastic mass of culture, a culture of congestion. Such hyperdensity is a beautiful merge of personalities and emotions, the hopes and dream place into one entity.

For our project, one of the complaints by locals is the increasing amount of foreign workers. Many locals are not happy with how such huge masses have come into our country. The safety of their community has wavered. And it seems that there’s no proper solution figured out.

The theory of skyscraper as a utopian device, that allows life to be secluded but sufficient by the same entity. In my opinion, the idea is tempting to allow all parties to survive and to be able to choose there respective culture or surroundings they want to be in. It does quite dissolve the tension but complete place them out of each other’s sight. Such a system seems to be immoral or prehistoric what if the communities were not meant to mix or not even willing to be exposed to, is it right to push on such a social burden on the locals? The increasing crime rate has affected the local Chinese community near Pasar Sungai Chua, and mainly it's snatching incidents and love scams. Don’t they have a right to be peace on their own land? But would this solve the issue of tension or just ignite a new way of disconnect to life?

1001749034 Gwendolyn Chan Mei Yee